Work it baby, own it!

Anyone who has seen "Working Girl" will surely remember Melanie Griffith's shaggy 80s hair and hi-top sneakers, set against the backdrop of her daily commute on the Staten Island Ferry.  

While it is the least-populated of New York's boroughs, Staten Island is the third-largest in area and arguably the most suburban in look and feel.  And despite this urban sprawl, Staten Island still features hundreds of acres of federal, state, and local parkland.  

At the time of earliest European contact, Staten Island was home to the Lenape peoples, who called the area Lenapehoking.  Archaeologists have found evidence of Lenape hunting tools, burial grounds, and everyday utensils dating back some 5,000 years.  

In 1604 a Dutch expedition, led by European explorer Henry Hudson, sailed into Upper New York Bay.  Hudson named Staten Island in honour of the Dutch parliament, known as Staten-Generaal.  By 1667, at the end of the second Anglo-Dutch war, Staten Island had become the newest English colony in New York.  In 1827, the Swan Hotel in Staten Island's West Brighton neighbourhood hosted NY State's celebrations to mark the abolition of slavery.  The partying lasted two days.  

Staten Island further played a part in history when a decommissioned landfill site on the Island was temporarily re-opened in 2001 to accommodate debris from the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center.  And after a big tourism push in the mid-2000s, Staten Island authorities are now debating how to 'green' the borough, to capitalise on its tidal wetlands, walking trails and wildlife.  One option currently being considered is a public park larger than Manhattan's Central Park!  We shall see.  

Staten Island is easily accessible from Manhattan by the free ferry service from the South Ferry terminal.  So lace your Reeboks, tease up your hair, and take a look!

Beware the groundhog

Staten Island Chuck lives at the Staten Island Zoo and he is New York City’s only weather-forecasting groundhog.  The first Saturday in February is designated “Groundhog Day”, and New Yorkers everywhere watch Chuck to find out just how much more winter weather they’ll have to take.  

According to American folklore, if it cloudy when Chuck emerges from his burrow on Saturday, then spring will come early.  But if it is a bright sunny day, Chuck will supposedly get spooked by his shadow, retreat back into his burrow, and the NYC winter will drag on for six more weeks.  At this rate, with our polar vortexes and sub-zero temperatures, I think all of us (including Mr. Wolf here) would like to have a stern word with SI Chuck!

Anyone disinclined to schlep all the way out to Staten Island in the wee hours of a cold Saturday morning can always fire up Netflix and watch “Groundhog Day”, the 1993 film starring Bill Murray that features the largest Groundhog Day celebrations in the US, held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania (with a groundhog named Phil).  

While the concept of Groundhog Day might seem silly, it has its beginnings in ancient European weather lore.  Having said that, in 18^th and 19^th Century Europe, it was actually a badger or bear that predicted the climatic conditions.  When German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania in the early 1800s they brought their traditions with them, but adopted the groundhog as their winter weather vane.  In fact, in southern Pennsylvania, Groundhog Day celebrations are taken so seriously that only the local German dialect is spoken all day, and those who speak English have to pay a fine!